Farklempt

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Overwhelmed by strong feelings such as joy or sorrow, so that one is left speechless or choked up
2. So moved by emotion that one cannot find words and may be close to tears
3. Choked with feeling, especially from happiness or grief, and momentarily unable to express oneself

Etymology: Yiddish "farklemt" means "depressed, distraught, or choked up," and it is the source of the English word, though most people meet the English form, "verklempt," with its German-looking prefix. That spelling was shaped by German, which has a prefix "ver-" matching the Yiddish "far-." German "verklemmt" is formally a cognate, meaning "jammed," but its sense of "uptight" is unrelated, so the resemblance is misleading. The word became familiar in English through a 1990s sketch comedy series, which popularized it as a comic way of saying someone was overcome with emotion. Its spelling in English reflects that comic use, with the "ver-" look suggesting a German flavor the Yiddish original never had.

Synonyms: overcome, choked up, emotional

Antonyms: unmoved